From my Family to Yours,

Go, spend your day with your family, and I'll be back next week, hopefully with some news.

Happy Holidays... Mostly

I have complicated emotions around the holidays. Not all holidays, of course. For instance, I love Valentine's, no holds barred and White Day (a Japanese semi-equivalent of Valentine’s Day, more on that in a future post) is a high favorite on my list. No, the ones I have issues with tend to be Christian holidays. Specifically, because I'm not Christian anymore, which means that most of my feelings on them are more complex than whether or not I enjoy it or believe in it.

I won't be getting into why I changed religions here. I didn't change my beliefs because paganism is better or because there was anything wrong with Christianity. For me, asking why someone follows a specific religion is like asking why someone chose blue as their favorite color instead of yellow. One clearly fits better on a personal level. My experience doesn't invalidate yours, any more than your experiences would invalidate mine. They’re different and that’s okay.

So, why do I bring this up? Well because Christmas is the one holiday that I feel invested in, regardless of the fact that I'm not Christian anymore. It was a part of me, ever since I was a child. Being born only three days before Christmas essentially meant that as I grew up, that was simply part of my holidays. The two were connected. Add to that my inherent love of pageantry and you can see where I lost everything.

Still, for a few years after changing my religion, I was adamant. My tree was a Solstice tree, gifts were Solstice gifts. We celebrate Solstice, not Christmas. Despite that dedication, there were some things I just couldn’t seem to shake the habit on and therefore kept or adapted and traditions from other places that I’ve stolen to add to our own celebrations. So, what does this end up meaning?

Well, it means that my winter holidays tend to end up a bit muddy.

I love Christmas songs, even if I’m more fond of the modern songs than I am of the classics. They get added to my music list usually on December 1^st. I set up a Christmas tree every year (since I never remember to call it a solstice tree), crowned by a blue/silver angel that my husband and I found and loved, despite my preferences towards wanting a star (to stand in for the Sun). I give gifts throughout the season to friends and all of my family gifts on the 24^th. After that, things start getting odder.

I love Santa Claus but prefer to go with the ‘history’ as coined by L. Frank Baum in the Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (where he’s a human raised by fey who gives gifts to children) and he delivers gifts whatever and whenever your winter celebration is. December 25^th is a dedicated non-work day, usually devoted to reading and playing video games. We will usually order Chinese food for dinner. I say Happy Holidays, rather than Merry Christmas, to people and I support service staff not being forced to say Merry Christmas to everyone (happy holidays will suffice if the company insists). I give all of my friends and family books and snacks for Jolabokaflod rather than giving Christmas gifts, unless I have no money and then I make art for them. We honor the Jólakötturinn (the Yule Cat) and make certain that every year both my husband and I receive something made of cloth (blankets, socks, and scarfs are common gifts). We celebrate the Solstice (this year on the 21^st) and the return of the sun on the twelfth day after that (usually celebrated on the first of January because we’re more likely to have it off) as the first day you really notice the longer days.

Yes, it is kinda weird to say "Merry Book Exchange" but I've been
using it in holiday cards for too long to change now.

So yeah, that is my muddy, nostalgia-filled holidays. Do you celebrate any holidays this time of year? If so, what and how do you celebrate it? Do you take traditions from multiple sources or are you still doing things the exact same way your parents did it? I know we have a lot of readers from the southern hemisphere, so I’ll be excited to hear what differences there are among us.

Just a Quick Editing Update

 It's been a good week, even if I have been more on the anti-social end of things. I've been working away on my novel and have finished editing the first eleven chapters. That puts me 25% of the way through already. And while the new chapters are definitely better written, I have to admit that for the most part, the editing hasn't been too bad. I think I've only had a really tough time with one or two of the chapters so far and the new direction for the book is making my original story pop a lot more than it was originally. I have very high hopes that this book will be out to you all soon. 

That said, it isn't all easy. I live in Canada and I have to admit that the stress of the new lockdown is starting to get to me. I've taken a few more days off than I should be doing things other than writing; usually still things that I need to get done, so at least I'm still being productive. In the end, it's slowing me down, but I'm not letting it stop me. I don't let anything stop me. 

And I think that's where I'm going to end it today. I'll be jumping back into my editing as soon as this goes up, so wish me luck! :)

Gifts for the Writers on Your List

 The season of giving has returned to us. While I usually hard push for presence, rather than presents, this year, our unique circumstances suggest that if you do have money to buy gifts for your friends and loved ones, this is the time to take that route. 

With that in mind, if you're looking at that reader/writer in your life and just not sure what to get them (and you don't want to stoop down to buying them the holidays' newest savior), here's a list of things they are almost guaranteed to enjoy. 

1. Author Swag
   Most writers and readers love books more than anything. However, most buy their books themselves, so buying actual books can be difficult. Instead, I suggest swag from their favorite author. A mug with the catchphrase of her favorite series, a t-shirt with the cover of his favorite novel on it, a notebook with art directly from the books... all of it will go over insanely well. In particular, most of your favorite writers will have a store where you can buy said swag. Buying direct from the author when possible is a great way to support that author while making your writers really happy. 
2. Books
   Does your writer love science fiction? Find out if they're already rocking the new favorites that were just released this year like Network Effect by Martha Wells or To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini; both of which were nominated for Best Science Fiction book of the year on Goodreads. They love Fantasy? There are, of course, my books, but if they've already read those, you could look at Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson, 4th book of the Stormlight Archives series and just released in November so still very new. Looking for a graphic novel to expand their reading experiences? I suggest Monstress. Start with Volume 1 unless they're already following it though. If you want my suggestions for favorite books, I absolutely loved The Woman in the White Kimono by Ana Johns and The Good Brother by E.L. Chen. I also finally had a chance to read the first book in the Wolf and Parchment light novel series and it rocks as well, though my preference stays with Holo and Lawrence from Spice & Wolf.
3. Stationary
   Most writers and readers love pens and other stationery. While I'm not sure why, I can easily suggest colored pens, colored paper, pretty notebooks, pencil cases, washi tape (not only good for crafts but for using in school for personal things as well), and any pen that writes in metallic inks.
   
4. Subscriptions
   Believe it or not, there are book subscription boxes out there. You can get a new book each month, with tea, cookies, candles or bookmarks. These boxes are generally cheap, are usually separated into genres so you can get them good books delivered monthly to their door. And let's be honest here, new books delivered to your door in a pandemic when you can't go to a bookstore is awesome. Even if you can't afford a big gift, even just one month for them to try the system out will almost certainly make your reader/writer friends smile. There are even a few subscription boxes for authors, specializing in improving craft, new stationery and other writing supplies and other authorly goodies. 
5.  Cash
   It's 2020 and we need to move past the idea that giving money is gauche. There are a lot of things that are too personal for me to suggest for readers and writers, but they still need. Writing software, subscriptions, e-readers, tablets for e-readers... these are very expensive or exceptionally personal items that we need, but we would never expect someone to buy for us. A donation from multiple people means we can afford big-ticket items that we will absolutely love.
   

And that's it for this list. Let me know if you think of any other good ideas to add to this list and let me know if you want me to look into making writerly swag. I don't know if that's something you'd be interested in, but if it is, let me know and I'll put it on the planning lists for next year. 

Of Writing and Ruin

     This week is not about distractions, although, I am conceding defeat in this Nanowrimo. Yes, for the first November since I started taking part in 2007. Why? Well, I've mentioned that book 5 was just not coming together and while I've gotten nearly 20k on it, I hit a point where I need to have that plot figured out prior to writing it. Normally, if I was having this problem, I would just write through it and fix all of those issues later. Here though, I noticed a particular theme. All of my decisions to make kept returning to prior ones made in books 3 and 4. That was when I realized that I really need Fox's Facade and Noble's Choice solid before I continue writing book 5. 

     This doesn't mean that I won't be working on it... it means that I'll probably finish the next draft for it next year, when I'm more prepared to write it and have those issues worked out and a great plot to keep you guys interested. 

     Fortunately, it isn't as if I have nothing else to work on right now and I'm not just talking about Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin on the Switch. For right now, I am back to editing Fox's Facade and planning out what changes here will lead to in Noble's Choice. Also, while it's still a little hush-hush, I'm currently making a few plans for the new year. If all goes to plan, I should have more information on those big plans a little further into December. 

     All that said, I do want to talk about Sakuna. I've been playing for six or seven hours now and feel that I can make an educated review on it. 

     Firstly, know that my review is good. This game is fun as hell. Sakuna is a bit of an unsympathetic bitch when you start, but even just six hours in, I can tell that she's improving. Its part of her growth as a character; something that I can really appreciate. She starts off as a Goddess that has always had the world held out to her on a silver plate. She's never had to work for it. And while her parents have gone missing, its clear that she doesn't let it bother her. The game starts when a group of humans find the bridge to the celestial realm and sneak into Sakuna's donation of rice and sake to the head Goddess looking for food. Upon catching them, she attacks and accidentally lights the sake and rice on fire. In punishment, she and the humans are sent to the Isle of Demons and charged with clearing it of evil. 

     The gameplay is really fun, a mix of rice farming sim and sidescrolling combat. I will say that the first year of growing rice, you feel out of your element and wish they would just tell you how to be a master like they do in other games. This, like Sakura's maturity and growth, is deliberate. When you first arrive on the isle, Sakuna has never had to grow rice before, she's just always had it done for her. Learning how to grow rice in minute detail isn't easy and I applaud the game for not making it feel like it is. The combat is very cool and despite being side-scrolling is difficult without being impossible. I'm playing on average, because I don't generally do combat in games, but I am enjoying this one. I just met my first real boss fight and am losing horribly. But with every failed attempt, I learn more about the bad guys and plot how to destroy him and thus, I get farther each time. Because there are multiple levels, you don't need to be forever fighting the same battle. If this one is too tough right now, choose other levels and improve your gear before going back. 

     I will say that if the idea of growing rice, day by day, doesn't interest you, then this may not be the game for you. A lot of this game is growing rice. You need to pick weeds daily, check on how much water is in your paddy each day, fertilize your stalks, and even chaff and hull your rice yourself. I am finding it impossible to put down, even with its difficulty though. It's a different type of game and I for one am here for it.

     The game is entirely voice-acted and I have to say, they didn't skimp here either. The cast really comes through, making you feel like you're personally getting to know all of the characters. Also, the art is incredibly gorgeous and the character design is beautiful. If you're looking for a game to pick up this holiday season, I can heartily suggest this game. 

5 out of 5 stars 

     Offhand, the Divine edition is amazing. It comes with an omomori charm showing Sakuna, a three-disc soundtrack, and a 128-page artbook in addition to the game. Totally worth the additional $20 or bucks.

CD Case Front Cover

Inner CD's contain different pictures on each album

Artbook; and the art is amazing

Omomori charm with a picture of Sakuna

Back of the omomori charm

Distractions

     It's Friday again, and this time, I have some good news. I have actually been writing again. Not as much as I would like, but it's coming and that makes me happy. I think I have nearly 10k of words on book 5, which is pretty darn good considering that I'm still working on some of the character motivations. It means that this book could end up being a lot like book 4 was. When I worked on book 4 during NaNoWriMo, the story just wasn't coming. I finished 50k, but the story didn't make sense till I worked over the plot again. I ended up rewriting all of it, but book 4 was way better as a result. 

     Of course, I can't guarantee that this one won't end up being pretty perfect as well in the end. That's the thing with drafts; a lot of the time, you just don't know till you go back and read it again. 

     That said, there has been a lot to distract all of us this month. The Boys is out on Amazon Prime and while I refuse to pay Amazon every month for Prime (their streaming service leaves a lot to be desired), I don't mind paying for it a month to get this show. As well, K/DA has been gracing all of us with their music and I'm here for it. Villain had an amazing video for it... I can't wait to see Drum Go Dum later today. Lastly, Sakuna of Rice and Ruin has finally been released. It's a video game about an adorable goddess, daughter of a harvest deity and a warrior deity. You are the goddess, banished to an island and tasked with clearing the isle of dangerous oni. It's a mix of side-scrolling adventure and Story of Season farm sim. Because while you may be a goddess of Ruin, you cannot forget that you are also a goddess of Rice. You have to grow rice, take care of the humans in your care, and become the goddess you were always meant to be. I haven't played it yet, but I can't wait to. 

Picture was taken from XSeed's website... The art is phenomenal as you can see.

     So, while I get back to writing, tell me what's distracting you this November. Or are you just as diligent and on the job as ever and I'm just a slacker? Let me know.

Whoops!

Every Nanowrimo is different. Some I whiz through, never slowing down. And some, I have to run my way all the way to the end, playing catch up the whole way. 

This year is going to be one of the later. Seriously, if it isn't one thing, it's another. 

However, instead of whining about it, I am going to celebrate my wins and introduce you guys to a new-to-me original song from Amalee and Divide Music created for Hazbin Hotel. This song could make me ship Charlie and Alastor all on its own, though I certainly hadn't even considered it before I heard this and saw the art. 

What do you guys think? Also, let me know who your favourite characters from Hazbin Hotel are? Personally, I love Cherry Bomb and Angel, though Vaggie is up there as well. I love her fiery personality. Oh, and definitely don't stop at just this song. Amalee does amazing covers and I have more than a few of her songs on my playlists. 

Whelp... That Did Not Go According To Plan...

In defiance of all my posturing, life decided that it did have to throw one more monkey wrench into my plans for Nano. My tendonitis flared. Since then, I've been resting my wrists. I did get 2k before I had to stop though. And all of that was on story. I do have basic ideas about where this book is going and in fact, the first quarter of the book is essentially figured out. I'm missing some motivations, but I have no worries that I won't figure out what I'm missing there. And I can work on planning out the story even with that missing bit. 

Also, having that beginning figured out is a relief in and of itself. I have ideas for the rest of the novel as well, including a very interesting storyline specifically for Kuzunoha and Isashi, which is awesome. 

And while the plotting part is always tough, I love seeing a story come together. That moment when everything starts working is amazing. So, My Day 5 total is 2091 words. Let's see if I can't add some more to that before the end of the day, yes?

Let me know if you're doing Nanowrimo this year? If so, what is your word count at? 

OH!!! 

Back on the 28th, KDA put out their new video finally! If you haven't seen the brilliant video or amazing song yet, check it out below. This time, Riot is giving us a full album being released tomorrow and has teased that we may get up to four more music videos for the group, essentially coming out the new few Friday's starting on the 13th. I am out and out stoked for this and cannot wait to see what they have in store. 

Come At Me, Bro!

Yesterday, I finished the read-through of my novel. All of the big plot issues have been fixed, but I still have a lot of work to do on it. Three to four scenes need to be added and I may need to rewrite one or two chapters to give them to other characters for balance. That said, I've already fully finished editing chapter one and I can't wait to get more time to work on it in the next few days. 

Part of the reason I'm so excited to work on it is because Kitsune-ken book 5 isn't coming together like I want it to yet. Truly, procrastination is an incredible tool. It is perfectly happy editing Fox's Facade or happily daydreaming about book 6 (which is essentially completely plotted at this point). Book 5 on the other hand is stuck at, "um, well it starts here and then maybe they go here, but I don't know why... I guess maybe they could go... um, well they need to end up over there, at any rate". Okay, I'm exaggerating slightly... I do have a full map and a reason they're heading there... I just don't have anything solid yet for that in-between part.  

I've considered other fixes (writing book 6 first, just editing this Nanowrimo, taking up drinking, etc) but I know those are all procrastination fixes and that won't help anybody. 

Instead, I'm going to have to do something I have only ever done once before; dive headfirst into the darkness in front of me, knowing only that my finish point is somewhere ahead. Much like a game of Don't Starve, I'll have nothing on me when I start the journey other than the desire to survive. I'll have to make my own tools and carve my path with the bits and pieces I find on the way. 

Fortunately, this isn't my first rodeo... Lord's Curse started with only a bit more than that. In the end, you all said that it might even be better than the first book. So, yeah, I know I can do this. 

Come at me, Nano. I'm ready.

Account Scare

Today I had a bit of a scare, which if nothing else fits the October narrative.

It started when a few of my friends sent me messages letting me know that on Instagram someone had sent them friend requests from an account that looked like mine. It hadn't been up long, but going to check out this other account wasn't a pleasant feeling. They'd taken pictures of my last five or posts on there and moved my account pic slightly, just to make it slightly different. 

After reporting the account as fake, I assumed that I would have to wait days or weeks before it would be dealt with. In this case, I was lucky and they got back to me within the hour. I'm assuming that having my friends who had alerted me also marking it as a fake account had some impact on that. Fortunately, they removed the account without any fuss. 

I'm assuming that the idea was more data collection than actually trying to steal my account. By friending a few of my followers again, they could gain access to more names, more accounts, as well as anyone else that just happened by. Which I suppose is better than them taking my account wholesale and trolling it away.

That actually has kinda happened to me. Six or seven years ago, when I was on Twitter a lot more than I am now, my account got hacked and actually stolen. I couldn't get into it and they'd changed all the accounts for resetting it. Contacting Twitter never garnered me a response and I had to simply count it as a loss. 

So today, this is a reminder. If you see your friends or your fav authors suddenly making a second account or posting oddly, send them a message and let them know, preferably somewhere other than on that account. I am certain that this would have been much worse for me if I hadn't acted quickly, which I wouldn't have if I hadn't been alerted.

The best way to keep each other safe is to watch each other's backs. 

Movie Review and a Personal Evaluation

This week I want to talk about Jiang Ziya. Or, at least, I want to start with it. If you haven't heard of it, I'm not surprised. Its a Chinese animated movie that came out recently and thus has a somewhat limited release. That said, this is the company that put out Ne Zha, back in 2019. While Ne Zha wasn't as good as The Legend of White Snake that was released later that year, Ne Zha was a fun movie. Sometimes the tone shifts were too frenetic for me and I wished they'd drop the fart jokes for a solid scene. That said, my husband loved those and wished the film would have stopped delving into seriousness as often as it did, so it really was a matter of taste, which part you enjoyed and which part you enjoyed less. 

Jiang Ziya doesn't suffer from that tone issue at all, I'm glad to say. Focusing on the story of the mythological general Jiang Ziya, the story is telling a simple tale that, as with everything ends up being a lot more complicated. To keep his place in heaven, Jiang Ziya is given the task of killing a fox demon. The demon fights back, even trapped as she is, and uses her abilities to show our titular hero that by killing her, an innocent will die as well. 

Thus begins an epic battle for the truth of the situation. 

I won't go further into the story, since the movie is new and spoilers are a thing. What I can say is that I quite enjoyed the story. I really liked that everything came down to one of my favorite tropes... the "from-a-certain point-of-view". The basis of this is the belief that everyone is the hero of their own story. The bad guy has his reasons, and so do the good guys, but the further you look into what these people have done, the more the issue muddies with all of the parties coming out as less than stellar morally-speaking. The animation was excessively good, unsurprising since as I said, this is the same company that did Ne Zha and I really enjoy the style. I suggest that if you haven't seen it yet, and don't mind watching movies with subtitles (or if you understand Mandarin), definitely keep an eye out for it. This is the second movie of a trilogy the company is making, so keep your eyes peeled for the third one. If you guys hear about it first, please be sure to let me know. I'll be waiting eagerly for it. 

My second topic is a bit of an apology. I've been quiet on my progress with my editing on Fox's Facade because I felt like I wasn't getting enough done on it for you guys. Today, I accepted that I had significantly underestimated the amount of work this story was going to need. So, while I'd prepared to write about 50% of the novel from scratch, I hadn't realized that trying to fit the two together would really mean rewriting closer to 80% of the novel. 

All that said, the story did need the change, and in the end, bringing you the best story is the name of the game. 

Having said all this, I will say that the editing shouldn't be significantly delayed, but it probably will take me longer than the two weeks I have left in October to finish it. Right now, I'll probably try to work on both during Nanowrimo, editing daily after my 1,667 words are finished. Or at least, that's the plan. As always, we'll see how the plan survives contact with the enemy. 

Fall has Officially Begun!

Artober has officially begun! 

I'm doing well so far. I've finished 6 pictures, as seen below. I am counting the sketch of Towa as well as my finished, since they were not only done on different days, but also both were inked. 

While the bottom three are original drawings of mine, the top three are based on character designs by Rumino Takehashi. I may draw them each in my style later on in the month. 

So what else am I up to? Well, my last couple of days were a write-off. My hubby and I seem to have caught a minor stomach flu. I am already writing again and trying to get book 3 finished. I'll just stop updating until I have something concrete to share here. Hopefully, it will be soon though. 

Aside from that, I haven't been up to much aside from reading. One of my favourite authors, Annette Marie is releasing two books this month, the last two in this specific Guild Codex series, though there are two other side series in the works as well. I made the overall bad decision to read the entire series again to move up to these last books. Now, I have another 3 books left to go before I can pick up the new books and its kinda killing me. No spoilers if you've read them yet! Not that I mind spoilers, but its just polite to wait a few weeks before you start dropping them. 

Oh, which reminds me. As part of my language studies, I have picked up a few children's books in Japanese. While I am making a lot of headway learning how to say, "my Asian studies class is on Thursday at 1 o'clock" I wanted to start learning more basic words. What better way to do that than with a book that you would read to children. Other than a few hitches (the language being used is all the casual form, not the polite form I'm more used to), it's been going well. I am currently translating しろくまくろくま which translates as "White Bear, Black Bear". It's a fun story if a bit creepy (as is the way with most children's stories, if you look at them) and I'm having fun going through it and writing down the vocabulary in an attempt to learn. 

What have you been getting up to? What are you reading?

Holmes Alone

First off, my basic review. This movie was a treat to watch and I sincerely hope we get more. A very decent 4 out of 5 stars and definitely worth your time. 

That said, here is your warning. Everything below this has spoilers, so if you don't want to be spoiled, go watch it and then come back. 

We're all good now? Good. 

First off, Holmes Alone is a joke on the character's name. Enola written backward is alone, which is her shtick. She does alone, has all her life (aside from her mother), and prefers it that way. Even Hot Guy(TM) doesn't break through that unbreakable wall until she realizes that he really does need her help. Which works for the character, since she's supposed to essentially be a Holmes character. As far as acting goes, everyone did a great job, especially the main actress, Millie Bobby Brown. I'm not certain that I can accept Henry Cavill as Sherlock though, even if he did a great job. He's a bit too... broad of shoulder for the role of Sherlock, in my opinion. Other than that physical bit, he played the role well and I wouldn't mind seeing him in the role again. 

The plot deals with important issues of the time period, in particular, women's rights, a subject near and dear to my feminist heart, which makes me love it more. Enola's mother has gone missing, leaving her in the care of her brothers, who haven't even returned for Christmas since Enola was very young. Now, they find that Mom has been taking the money that Sherlock and Mycroft have been sending back home and using it for nefarious things. Also, knowing that her daughter would never survive Mycroft's version of TLC, she left her quite a bit of money. Money which Enola uses to try to find her mother who doesn't want to be found. During her daring escape, she saves the life of a young lord on the run from his life. She finds out that Mom was involved with the militant arm of the suffragette movement, but has to put finding her on hold to save the young lord again. She succeeds but is captured and delivered in Mycroft's hands as a result. Her lord saves her from the "finishing school" Mycroft has her sent to, but she convinces him that they must confront the killer so he can take his place in the House of Lords for the upcoming vote on the rights of women. 

As far as the plot goes, this is actually a great little plot. It was intelligently carried out for the most part and kept me entertained, even if it was a little obvious as to where the plot was going. In this case, it wasn't a detriment to enjoying the show, which I really appreciated. 

However, there is always something that brings it down and in this movie, it was the fight scenes. In particular, if you are a small woman who has been taught to fight and you choose to fight someone, I can understand trying to punch and kick at first. Fighting well takes skill, and so long as there isn't a 100 lbs or more difference between fighters, I'll put my money on the skilled one all the time. However, if their opponent is also a fighter, with at least 50 lbs on that girl and the reach to match, you don't keep trying to fight with your fists. It was established in the opening that Enola was taught to use weapons from her mother. True, the bow and arrow were clearly favored, but I'm pretty sure they were fencing in at least one of those scenes. And yet, Enola never once even goes for a weapon, when she's fighting against an assassin trying to kill the lord. She continues to try to use a throw that she's never succeeded at using before. While I can understand that it was to give her a "stand up and cheer moment", this came off as scripted and irritating, especially when she ignores weapons around her like polearms and forged iron fence poles in favor of her fists. For me, it detracted from the intelligence of her character, which, when it's a Holmes-type character, is necessary to sympathize with them. 

That said, this movie is still 100% worth your time to watch. 

Have you seen Enola Holmes yet? Do you agree with my assessment here? Let me know in the comments. Also, would you like me to do a few more of these? I don't normally do movie reviews, but if this is something that would interest you guys, let me know. 

Fall is When I Fall Down

... from exhaustion that is. 

Okay, I'm joking on falling and being exhausted, but I am moving into my busiest season of the year. The fall season starts in September for me and doesn't end until usually December (though last year it lasted until February). 

It is not only when all the new shows I'm waiting for come out (this year, RWBY Season 8 is coming out, as well as Inuyasha's successor, Yashahime or Princess Half-Demon are the ones I'm most eager for, though only until Log Horizon, Season 3 is finally released in January) but its also the month-long drawing challenge I most wait for. And even if I ignore that all important challenge, I can't forget about planning for Nanowrimo. This year, I'm hoping to start writing book five of the Kitsune-Ken series and while I have an idea for the plot, it is nowhere near realized enough for me to start yet. 

One of my favourite digital pictures so far. Please, do not expect this quality during October. This took me a stupid amount of time to do.

On the other hand, I am really looking forward to it. I really like being busy, even if it does mean I end up feeling like I'm burning the candle at both ends to get everything done. Especially when that busyness comes with Nanowrimo and art. It pushes me to my edge, but I do some of my best work when I'm pushing everything out. I even have the lofty goal of trying to plan out the rest of the Kitsune-Ken series this October, at least, generally. An idea of what story will be told each book and what to look forward to. 

And with that update, I'm going to run. I want to get started on that backlog. I don't want to keep you guys waiting for Fox's Facade any longer than I need to. 

To Ink or not to Ink(tober)? That is the Question.

     So, Inktober. 

     Normally, I am big into Inktober and I like pledging to draw something every day. Generally, I do not make every day. I average about half and never regret it. This year, however, I'm questioning whether to take part again. I do have to specify here. I will be still be trying to draw every day in October. That isn't in question, even if I know I'm going to be too busy to draw every day. Its whether I will be working in only ink and whether I will be using the hashtag. 

     Part of my hesitation is due to the creator of Inktober himself. I won't go heavy into the allegations and legal issues... I'm not a lawyer and I've done minimal research on it. If you're in for the long haul, here's a good Reddit post going over in much better detail what I touch on ever so briefly below. 

     In 2019, the creator started claiming Copywrite on personal art books released with Inktober in the title. This means that a lot of artists who take part and then release their art as an Inktober book for their fans couldn't release it without a lot of hassle and legal work on a book that he has nothing to do with, but that he created the event. This year the controversy is that the creator has been accused of plagiarism by an indie artist/author who released a very similar book 2-3 years ago on inking.   

     As I said, I am not going to get into my personal feelings on him claiming Copywrite on artists' work that he had nothing to do with except that they originally posted them all under the Inktober hashtag, nor will I be talking about the lawsuit. I don't know enough about Copywrite law, I haven't read either of the books involved and while I've done a handful of research, I am in no way qualified to say yeah or nay on any of it. 

     What I can say is that all of the hubbubs is making me unsure if I want to be attached to the name this year. Also, while normally I work with only ink and love it, I would really love to get more sketching time in on my Surface. Drawing digitally is a completely different set of skills than painting in any sort of traditional medium, even if mine is a bit closer since I'm missing some of the cooler tools that the paid programs give you. 

     All that said, I'm just not sure yet. There are other options out there. Artober, Midnightober, OCtober, Witchtober... There's one for digital-only, as well, though I can't remember the exact name for that one. The question is which of these options is a fit for me. 

    Honestly, I don't really have an answer yet. I'll probably look into what my friends are choosing to do and see how open the options are. What do you think? Are you still interested in seeing any drawings I do during the month? Let me know below or on FB.

Learning Languages: The Super Difficult Way

 I have never been quiet about the fact that I have huge admiration for people who can learn multiple languages. I took Spanish classes in high school and Japanese in university. Since then, I have done online studying and taken books out of the library, bought language learning software, and more. All in all, I am bad at learning languages. One of the things that has really worked for me, if in an excessively slow way, is Duolingo. I've been using it for around two and a half years now. I'm not very far into it, I only know about 500 words. 

All that said, I am an eager and active study partner, if slower than I would like. So when a friend of mine asked if I wanted to study with her for her university class, I jumped on the chance. Since the class is offline, I spent some time trying to answer the test questions she sent me on paper. That was when I discovered something very interesting that I hadn't realized before. 

Part of my inability to grasp the language is due to my aphantasia. 

How did I discover this? On my phone, I can type Japanese really quickly, identify the characters, and even a good couple dozen characters I am starting to pick up on.  However, when I tried to write down the answers on paper, I couldn't remember what any of the symbols looked like. 

This isn't particularly new to me. I remembered, very vaguely, having that problem when I took Japanese in university. What I hadn't realized then was that part of the reason I was having trouble is that unlike many of my fellow studies, I couldn't just recall what the specific hiragana or kanji looked like and draw it from there. I was left suddenly wondering if I hadn't actually learned them. However, it couldn't be that since I've actually found myself able to read lyrics in Japanese on some of the videos I've been watching lately. 

I finally realized that it was because of my aphantasia. I can't see the pictures, so I can't recall them that way from memory. The only thing I've found that works so far, is forcing myself to learn from muscle memory, where you do the very dull work of writing out words and letters like a kindergartener on coffee. By giving my fingers and hands muscle memory, I can commit them to memory, forcing them to stay in the little box I have set aside for them. 

The main con of learning languages this way is that its slow. Very slow. As in I'll have to spend hours daily, simply writing out the alphabet, over and over right now. That said, I don't know if there is a faster way to do this without keeping a picture beside me at all times. I will research and continue forwarding the long slow work of putting pencil to paper, but if any of you have suggestions, I'd love to hear them. 

Hella Fun Movie Week

 It has been a hella fun week. I've been writing and watching B-movies with my husband. Constantine from 2005 was still a blast to watch. Good tone and sets, good actors, outdated effects, and the most overplayed script you can imagine. It was super fun though. I think Keanu Reeves will always be my Constantine because of it. We also watched one of the new Alien movies; I can't remember the name, but it starred Olivia Munn; an actress I always enjoy watching. Even she couldn't save this movie though. It went right past B-monster movie into a D-movie. We also watched Push with Chris Evans. Since I am wholly in the mood for a good urban fantasy it hit that niche for me nicely. 

On the work front, I have finished another chapter or two and I have another that's nearly done. Unfortunately, September is upon us which means my tendinitis is acting up again. Before anyone worries, it isn't bad and as a yearly event, I am finally getting an idea of how to deal with it. It means that I write until it starts acting up and then I have to take a break for a while. Expect to see a lot of art posts and me cheering my Japanese for a few weeks while my writing is slow. Despite that, I am getting a lot of work on this novel done and I don't currently think I'm going to be behind my schedule so long as I do still write rather than forsake everything for my art. It's always a challenge but one that I think I'm up for. 

And that's going to be it for this week since I can feel my wrist just starting to ache. Please, if you've read Lord's Curse don't forget to write up a review on Goodreads, Amazon, or wherever you bought it from. Those reviews really help with getting my work seen by more people. If you already have, please consider suggesting my book to friends if they're looking for a fun fantasy to read next. Every little bit helps! Thanks again, Readers! I couldn't do it without you!

Music of my Life (at least, right now)

 Okay, I'm going to be honest here. I was kinda stuck on what to talk to that I haven't already discussed recently when I realized that three absolutely kicking songs were released recently and that I just had to talk about them on here. So please, stick with me for a few minutes while I rock your world with three new amazing songs. 

The oldest of the three was released on the 17th of July. Addict is a song for Hazbin Hotel, a delightful musical about Charlie, the princess of Hell, hoping to start a hotel where she can try to redeem souls. The show pulls no punches, and the video Addict goes even further into that, into the very checkered past of Angel Dust, a spider demon porn star denizen of Hell and the hotel's first demon recruit. I totally suggest you check it out. I can't stop listening to it!

Just over a month later, BTS released their newest single, Dynamite. This is a lot hoppier than the sort of songs I usually associate with BTS, but I've got to admit, I'm kinda digging it. It's catchy as hell and quickly rising into my current favorite list. It doesn't hit you as hard as Addict but I appreciate it all the more for the bubblegum, 80's pop sound. Also, while its never a requirement for me, I really did enjoy that so much of this song was done in English, so I didn't have to find a lyric video to try to learn the lyrics, which are always what I pay the most attention to in my music. If you haven't heard it, listen. 

The last song on this list came out just yesterday. I am always stupidly excited by Riots songs for League of Legends. Of all those, K/DA's Popstars remains my absolute favorite of the lot. So, imagine how stupidly excited I was when Riot started putting out new character designs for K/DA and suggesting that their newest EP would be dropping soon. Yesterday, we got about 2/3 of a lyric only video (or at least, it sounds unfinished to me) and I've heard a rumor that its because one of the new girls to the group drops a kickass chorus directly after this which we'll all get to hear when the full video is released. I can't guarantee that, but I can't wait to see if it does continue. Either way, the song, called The Baddest, absolutely rocks. I haven't wanted to stop listening to it since I first heard it. 

There have been other songs that I have been falling in love with too, of course. The new Black Pink song, How Do You Like That, and of course, the RWBY, Vol. 7 soundtrack are also top-notch, just not quite as amazing as these three songs for me. Tell me, which is your favorite? Have you heard any other new releases that you can't stop bopping to? Let me know in the comments or on FB! I'd love to hear what you're unable to turn off right now. 

When Words Collide Still Has It

 It does not feel like its been a week since WWC finished. And even though I wasn't presenting this year and it was only online, I still finished the weekend tired and happily exhausted. The presentations were very informative and I will admit, as much as I love being up in front of people presenting along with everyone else, it was really nice to have an easier weekend where I just got to attend things again. I got a chance to talk to more than a few of my friends that I haven't seen in person since last year. 

I have new ideas on where to take my novels, promotions I want to run, and different media that I'd like to explore. I have a lot of information I want to look over and listen to again. In addition to those, because it was an online event, I didn't have an hour's long trip home and could afford to stay late and chat with everyone. We talked ghost stories, met new friends, and got to reconnect with the old ones. Hearing Mark Leslie read one of his short stories was wonderfully creepy. I love a good ghost story and he provided. 

The rest of the week passed in a tired blur, as it always does. Today is the first day I was able to get right back into the act of writing, though I have been doing research on a few of those ideas that are percolating. And I will say that the chapter I'm writing is turning out wonderfully. It's for Fox's Facade and a Kuzunoha chapter. Its a discussion between her and a new character introduced in this book. I'm not sure how long this new character will stick around, but he's interesting to me, more so than he was the first time I wrote him into this story.

In fact, I'm currently taking time away from it to write this post. So, I'll cut it here and get back to work getting that next book out to you faster. 

Please remember, if you haven't gotten a chance to put in a review for Hunter's Gambit or Lord's Curse, I need those reviews to get my novel seen and into other people's hands. As of Friday when I checked, we still only had the one (and allow me to thank you so much for your kind words in that review) but I can't wait to see what the rest of you think! 

When Words Collide 2020

 This weekend isn't going to be what I wanted it to be. 

Why? This weekend I was supposed to be attending When Words Collide. I had a great solo panel I was going to give and I had signed up to be on two or three others. I was particularly excited because it was going to be the first solo panel I ever gave at one of these events. That panel has now been moved to next year when, hopefully, Covid-19 will be nothing more than a memory. 

As good as that thought is, it still doesn't quite make up for the fact that I was supposed to have all that this year. 

One of the new add pictures I created. What do you think of it?

That said, the people at When Words Collide haven't hung anyone up to dry. They have planned out a full weekend of fun and free panels available online. I am not going to be on any of them, but I am more than looking forward to hanging out with everybody at them as a spectator. 

I have looked over all of the panels and there are more than a few great ones. Most of mine this year are focussed on the business side of writing since my goal this year is to try and treat this more like a business than a hobby, but the ones focussed on writing look amazing as well. It makes me wish I could be in multiple places at once. 

So, if you're going to be hanging out online for WWC this weekend look around and you may just see me hovering somewhere. If so, come by and say hi! There will be digital hugs for everyone!

Our Hearts Go Out To Beirut

I was in the middle of researching the hanfu revival movement when I saw some people on my FB feed start mentioning the explosion in Beirut. At first, I was saddened, but I didn't look into it until the news show I watch put out a video on it about 20 minutes later. Then I saw the video and was stunned by the damage. 

What we know isn't much at this point. According to the news, the government knew they were storing over 2700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate (a chemical commonly found in fertilizer and one of the easiest explodable things to get your hands on if you need a make a bomb, according to popular belief) after the ship carrying it was abandoned by its owner in 2014. Cue to 2020 and a fire at a nearby warehouse set off the highly explosive substance with the force of a 3.1 earthquake. 

The government doesn't think there was foul play, but they are still looking into it. Unfortunately, I won't have anything new to add to the mix. I just wish that someone had dealt with the chemical much earlier. That much in one place sitting that long would have gone up if someone smoked too close to it. If you have money, consider donating to whichever company you feel best handles relief efforts. There are a lot of people suffering over there, 200-300 thousand people that are now homeless and while only 134 dead have been found, its entirely likely that many more will simply never be found, leaving their families without closure. The full extent of the loss probably won't be known for weeks or years. 

My heart goes out to the entire city of Beirut. 

I HAVE BOOKS!

Guys, its going to be a short post this week. Mainly because I have super important news! 

I HAVE BOOKS! 

That's just one of the boxes that came in! They are all so perfect! I am glad to finally have one of my own to put on my shelf. Yes, I do keep one of each of my novels. That shelf is currently filled with other stuff, but it is a larger section devoted to my novels than it was before. 

The book above is a copy of my first fully edited novel, a dark fantasy titled Falling Through the Threshold. One day, I'd like to go through it and edit it to put out there. However, I was originally seeing it as a trilogy... now I think it may do better as a stand-alone. Since I printed it out and got it bound at my local Staples I keep it on the shelf.

They just arrived today! So if anybody was holding off to order directly through me, you can do that now! Just contact me and let me know! It also means that as soon as I can start hitting the convention circuit again that I'll have physical copies to take with me! 

Has anyone finished reading it yet? I am sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see what your reviews say. I hope you're all loving it!

Currently Reading

Its been a while since I've done a "currently reading" catch up, so this week, I'll be listing out what I've been reading lately and what I've thought about each book. 

Most recently, I finished Smoke Bitten by Patricia Briggs. It's fun and a good book, like most of her Mercy Thompson series. Not the best of the series by any stretch, but certainly somewhere in the middle there. Worth a read if you like Urban Fantasy. If anyone was put off by the love triangle in the first few books, by book 3 or so she has 100% chosen and it isn't an issue anymore. Stick with it, that part goes away. 

Just a few days before that I finished the latest Guild Codex series release, Lost Talismans and a Tequila by Annette Marie. A fun bit of urban fantasy that I highly suggest... as highly as I suggest the Mercy Thompson series. If you enjoy urban fantasy and haven't read either of these series, you're doing yourself a disservice. Go pick up the first one. You won't be disappointed. 

Another book I read is the first book in the Log Horizon light novel series by Mamare Touno. The third season of the anime is coming out later this year in the fall. You can't go wrong with this series. Some may find it a bit wooden to read, due to its translated status. Push past that. The characters are fun and the world-building is top-notch. 

I decided on a lark to read the C.E. Murphy's Walker Papers series again. I finished that series early in July. Again, this is one of the urban fantasy novels that I highly suggest you read. Its one of the series I'll return to again and again. Check them out. 

I read Wolf's Whisper by Arizona Tape earlier this month as well. This one, I can't suggest, unfortunately. The writer writes desire well, but the MC is more than a bit on the stupid side, everyone is an emotional bomb and I still can't tell you if this was supposed to be fantasy, Asian fantasy, urban fantasy, or something else. It was a harem, which was fine, but it was a harem in which there is no sex. Considering that the MC often forgot about her quest in favor of thinking about sleeping with her harem, this is a bit unforgivable. 

Right now, I'm reading the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger. Starting with Meat Cute, the latest release detailing the oft-mentioned "hedgehog incident", it tells the meet-cute of our heroine Alexia Tarabotti and Lord Conall Macon. Technically, its book 0.75 of the series, as it happens just a few years before the first book. I would suggest you read the Parasol Protectorate series first if you haven't already. Otherwise, you may find yourself in for a hell of a ride in the next books. The whole series (steampunk, paranormal romance) is fun and one hell of a ride. Just stick with it past the silliness... or rather, understand that reading it is half the fun and it is meant to be outrageous that way. 

The other book I'm reading right now is The Undine's Tear by Talena Winter's. So far, its got my nod of approval. This is a fantasy about a mermaid type woman who has to heal the stone that powers everything for her people... set in an alternate earth, it seems most normal people don't even know the merpeople, known as undines, even exist. So really fun ideas there. 

And that is it for this week. Tell me what you've been reading lately and whether you've liked them. Also, can you let me know where you'd like me to link each book to? The Kindle ebook? The physical book from Amazon? Goodreads? Let me know and in the future, I'll see about finding the links that you'd prefer I connect to. 

An Interview Link and a Review

Today is going to be a little bit different. The video game that I've been waiting months for finally released. I haven't been playing non-stop or anything, but I have played it long enough to have my review for it. However, most of you don't come here for my video game reviews. Heck, I'm pretty sure none of you come for my rare book reviews either. Fortunately, in addition to my review below, I have an interview I gave on Talena Winters' website. It was really fun to do and I get to talk about my books, so if you want to read that (and I totally suggest you do), head over there. 

Now, for the review.

Years ago, after I'd tried and failed badly writing my first book, my boyfriend gave me his old Gameboy Advance. Unfortunately, he didn't have any video games of the sort that I enjoyed, so we took a run over to Wal-Mart to see what they had. I got a few games that day, all out of a $10 bin. One of those games was Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. I fully admit I picked it up because my boyfriend promised me that if I didn't like it, he had a friend who would buy it from me, for the $10 afterward. After all, there was literally no downside to buying a game I was pretty sure I was going to hate. "Extreme Farming" just didn't sound all that entertaining to me. After trying the other few games I got, and becoming bored with them before a week, I finally took 'Extreme Farming' out of its case for a test run.

I got probably got over a hundred hours in that game over the next two weeks. I was playing it on the bus to work, on the bus home, during my breaks, during the evening, pushing back bedtime just to finish one more day, which always became 5 or 6 before the system actually got turned off. 

Even after that extreme rush ended, I was still playing it quite often for the next year. I bought the next games, but they kept going right downhill until Story of Seasons came out. Apparently, they made the original Harvest Moon series, but lost the name and the publisher just kept using it (more on that here if you're interested). Story of Seasons took everything I loved about the original game and made it even better. Since then, I've lost thousands of hours to the Story of Seasons franchise and this game looks to be no different. 

Now that you know the history, on to my review. 

Friends of Mineral Town is a solid 8 out of 10 stars for me. As I mentioned, its a remake of the original, so to keep the vibe it originally had, they kept the story pretty simple and didn't change the characters much. This does mean that the townsfolk tend to be less nuanced than what we've seen from Story of Seasons up to this point. It's more like the more recent Harvest Moon games for that. On the other hand, the dialogue has been upped a notch from the original to make everybody seem a bit more alive and interesting. The new character designs were made with the idea that everybody is hot in their own way. This is more hit and miss. The original pictures had a bit more life to them, showing their personalities through pose and dress, as well as expression. Now we have a lot more to the expressions, and less about the way they dress and stand. Personally, I like most of the new designs, though Zack and the Mayor do nothing for me. Also, the Harvest Goddess was always elegant and beautiful, my marriage candidate of choice in the first one. Here, they made her more cute than eloquent and hot... much to my disappointment. 

I should mention that they've now opened up romances to either gender. You still get a child in the end, and life continues. You can play with it or not as you choose. Personally, I am all for this change, and I hope that we'll have it in every game moving forward from this point. 

In addition to the original bachelors and bachelorettes, we've got a new girl and guy as well. I love Jennifer, everything from her character to her design is awesome... Brandon on the other hand has to be more than the beefcake he appears to be, but for the life of me, I don't see it. He's surly every time I talk to him, to the point where I don't care to learn about him further. 

The controls are a bit wonky... less intuitive than you would expect, but you'll pick them up rather quickly. The days feel like they're passing by too quickly, but if you plan your days in advance (from the comfort of your nullspace home), I can guarantee that you won't feel anywhere near as flustered trying to finish everything. 

One thing I dislike is that we are missing the customization that we've come to expect from a Story of Seasons game. You choose your character (one of four options) and while you'll have different outfits, you won't be able to change your hair color or anything. Also, the skin colors are notably white, pale, and something near tan... I would have liked to see more diverse skin tones, though, with perhaps with them not offering hair options, they felt it was best to limit colors to match the hair tones they chose. Regardless of the reasoning, I missed the ability to change my character and house to match what I wanted it to be. I hope that they'll add DLC or add a quality of life update adding in the options for it, eventually. 

And that's about it. I entirely suggest getting this game. It isn't as complex as the more recent offerings from Story of Seasons, but that simplicity is part of its charm, in my opinion. There's still going to be tons of playability to the game and hundreds of hours of fun for you to enjoy while you play out the different lives you can live in Mineral Town. 

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An Unfortunate Tweet

Camp Nano has been one heck of a journey for me this year. Normally, my editing takes the process of reading my book, assembling it in the correct order, and editing page by page from there. However, when I was working with my new editor on my last book, I found a new way. I went over the book and wrote what each chapter was, put them on post-it notes and stuck them inside my notebook while I played around with it. It helped me to really see where I was missing plot points and make sweeping changes if needed from a top-down approach that my old way of working wouldn't have allowed. I decided to see if it helped me with editing this next book. 

I should start by saying I knew it had problems. I was expecting a lot of rewrites. However, I was not expecting this method to show me that my entire plot was wrong and needed to be rewritten essentially. And I'm only exaggerating a little when I say that. I just finished the top-down overview and I have 17 chapters that are listed as "rewrite from scratch"... there could be more by the end of this pass, but that's what I'm working with now. 

Despite that daunting number, I'm actually pretty hopeful. Fox's Facade was a really difficult book to write in the first place. It was going a few different places, but at the time, I don't think I was a good enough writer to anticipate what exactly it would need. Regardless of the actual reason, I think the way I have restructured the plot will work a lot better now. I began rewrites a few days ago. Hopefully, it won't take me too long to do them. I'd like to have the edits out to my beta readers by September, if possible, though I'll have to see how my editing is going before I set that as the goal. 

That finished, I'd like to talk about a tweet that was posted earlier this week. 

This tweet from @dntmakeitworse to be exact. If you've read my blog for any amount of time, I'm sure you know how false this is. Yes, women tend to be overlooked in publishing. I'm not saying that isn't a problem. I've read the story all too many times about fans walking up to female authors and thanking them for writing under a pseudonym or their initials. "I never would have picked up your book if I'd known a woman wrote it" is something that all too many have heard. 

That said, while I think this was what the tweeter was trying to convey, they are horribly wrong. Even leaving aside solid staples such as Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, Anne McCaffery, and Agatha Christie, there are hundreds of others. Margaret Atwood, Harper Lee, Ursula K. LeGuin, Baroness Orczy... this isn't even counting that the first novel in the world was written by a woman; my personal hero of Murasaki Shikibu, the lady-in-waiting who wrote The Tale of Genji. 

If you think women haven't always been there, doing the same things men were, you are sorely mistaken. Our tale often isn't told; the women warriors of Shaka Zulu's armies, the female samurai of Japan, the women of Scotland trained to defend the homestead when the men were away. 

And that I think is where I'll end it today. Let me know who your favorite female author as a kid was. Personally, I will also hold a place in my heart for Anne McCaffery. I loved her story of psychics, dragons, and cats.